Hard surface cleaning articles comprising an adhesive to retain particles and hairs are known in the art. For example PCT patent application WO 01/62132 by The Procter & Gamble Company describes cleaning sheets comprising an additive that enhances the pick up and retention of particulate material from surfaces, while minimizing the amount of residue left on the surface being cleaned. Adhesives are mentioned among the additives which can be used. The mentioned application also describes a cleaning implement comprising a mop head having a resilient bottom surface, a portion of which preferably has a substantially smooth curved profile or crown which engages a removable cleaning sheet. The application also describes how the adhesive can be applied to the cleaning sheet only in selected zones, in order to avoid excessive tackiness and preserve the ability of the cleaning sheet to smoothly glide across surfaces
Patent application WO 03/075735 by 3M Company, describes a wipe for capturing ordinary dust or dirt and heavier particles such as sand that includes a wiping member having discrete valleys and peaks, and wherein an adhesive is provided in the valleys and not on the peaks. The adhesive can contact a surface sufficiently to pick up sand and other heavy particles, but not to so great a degree that the coefficient of friction between the wipe and the surface is unduly high, which can make wiping difficult.
Similarly to the 3M application, U.S. Pat. No. 6,550,092 from S. C. Johnson describes a cleaning sheet including a fabric layer with a plurality of cavities secured to a flexible backing layer so as to define an outer fabric surface with a plurality of cavities therein. The cavities can include a tacky bottom surface capable of enhancing the retention of dust and other particles. Cleaning implements and methods of cleaning surfaces using the cleaning sheet are also described.
The hard surface cleaning articles described in the prior art can be further improved, especially as concerns their efficiency in capturing and retaining particles and hairs.
Based on the above state of the art it is an objective of the present invention to provide hard surface cleaning articles having a better efficiency in capturing and retaining particles and hairs. It is another objective of the present invention to provide hard surface cleaning articles which are more effective in picking up large particles such as breadcrumbs and the like.
All cited prior art applications describe hard surface cleaning articles comprising generic adhesives. We have surprisingly found that by selecting a specific range of adhesive materials having peculiar Theological properties, hard surface cleaning articles can be obtained having an improved efficiency of particles/hairs pickup. This translates in a much easier handling of the article, in a faster cleaning action and also in more effective cleaning, including the ability of collecting bigger particles.